Paper discharge apparatus

ABSTRACT

A paper discharge apparatus wherein a movable guide plate ( 23 ) is closed to guide a sheet of paper (P) when discharging paper (P), and is tilted downward to open a portion below a first conveyor passage (R 1 ) when keeping or collecting paper (P) within the apparatus. The movable guide plate ( 23 ) is tilted downward to force paper fall for collection. This apparatus can stably issue and collect sheets of paper by reliably preventing jamming and stagnation of the sheets even when they have wrinkles and strong curls or when they are weakened.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an improvement in paper dischargeapparatuses for use in issuing apparatuses for issuing receipts,tickets, etc., using rolls of paper, for cutting and discharging printedslips, and for collecting discharged slips when they are not removed.

BACKGROUND ART

Automatic transaction machines such as cash dispensers, ATMs,information terminal apparatuses, etc., have been conventionallyinstalled in unmanned shops, and these machines are provided with anissuing apparatus for issuing receipts or tickets on which necessaryinformation is printed so as to report transaction information for acustomer. As a method of printing in an issuing apparatus, thermalmethods, dot impact methods, or the like are used. A roll of paper isunwound, necessary information is printed thereon, and a printed portionis cut by a paper cutting mechanism, whereby a receipt or a ticket isissued.

In a conventional issuing apparatus, paper is conveyed to a dischargeport and is printed one line at a time, and the issuing paper isgradually discharged from the discharge port. Therefore, when a customerstands by while picking up the issuing paper, the paper is preventedfrom being conveyed, whereby it is warped in a loop-like state, and apaper jam is caused. When the customer picks up and pulls out theissuing slip of paper, the printing or cutting quality thereof isinferior, or a cutter blade in a cutting mechanism may be damaged,depending on the circumstances. In the case in which a customer leaveswithout receiving the issued slip of paper, there may be some problemssuch as the next issuance of a slip of paper is obstructed, or anothercustomer may take the slip of paper whereby secret information thereoncannot be kept confidential.

Therefore, in order to solve the above problems, the present inventorsdeveloped a paper discharge apparatus which is disclosed in JapaneseUnexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8(96)-268638. According tothis paper discharge apparatus, a leading end of a issuing slip of paperis clamped by a pair of paper discharge rollers so as not to bedischarged from the discharge port, and the paper is held in a loop-likestate in an issuing apparatus until the printing and cutting operationsare completed. In the paper discharge apparatus, the slip of paper isdischarged from the discharge port after the printing and cuttingoperations are completed, and furthermore, the paper is retracted intothe apparatus if a customer leaves it for a given period, whereby theabove problems caused by an inadvertent action of the customer can besolved.

However, in the above paper discharge apparatus according to developmentby the present inventors, it is constructed such that a bottom portionof a paper conveyor passage which extends between a cutting mechanismand a pair of discharge rollers is opened so as to bend the slip ofpaper downward. The paper is thereby not at all restricted by the openedbottom portion in the paper conveyor passage. However, in order toreliably issue a slip of paper in a nearly unattended situation in whichthe apparatus is provided in an automatic transaction machine and toreliably collect a remaining slip of paper, there are the followingproblems even if the above paper discharge apparatus is employed.

That is, the automatic transaction machine may be installed in variousplaces which may be outdoors or indoors, and it is also may be usedunder conditions of high temperature and high humidity, depending on thecircumstances. In the case in which it is used under such adverseconditions, the paper may be weakened by absorbing moisture and curl inthe shapes of the paper conveyor passage, guide rollers, etc.Alternatively, paper may be caused to have wavelike wrinkles at aleading end thereof and be bent so that both ends of a cut slip of paperhang down. In particular, when a thermal paper, on which a coatingmaterial is coated thereon, was originally a soft paper, such phenomenaare apparent.

When paper weakens and the leading end thereof hangs down, the leadingend does not reach a guide plate which is provided in front of a pair ofdischarge rollers. In this case, the paper is not discharged and dropsinto a collection tray which is provided in an issuing apparatus. Whencurls or wrinkles are caused in a paper, even if a leading end of thepaper reaches a pair of discharge rollers, the paper cannot be clampedbetween the pair of discharge rollers, thereby causing a paper jam. Whenthe winding diameter of a roll of paper is very small, the paperstrongly curls, whereby the paper cannot be clamped between the pair ofdischarge rollers.

When a remaining paper is collected, there may be the followingproblems. For example, in a printing device, an electrical charge isstored on a surface of a paper as a static electrical charge. Inparticular, this phenomenon is apparent under low humidity conditions.In this case, the collected paper adheres to a plastic guide plate orother portions by static electrical charge, whereby the paper blocks apaper collecting passage and cannot be collected. When the windingdiameter of a roll of paper is very small, the paper strongly curls,whereby the paper causes a blockage and obstructs the paper collectingpassage.

Furthermore, when a pair of discharge rollers is provided on bothsurfaces of a paper, as shown in FIG. 14, the center of the paper in thecross direction bends, whereby it becomes more rigid along thelongitudial direction. In such a case, when a leading end of the papercontacts an inner wall of an issuing apparatus, an excessive load iscaused at a pair of discharge rollers, whereby a motor is continuouslyrotated while operating a torque limiter, so that a control error iscaused.

A customer often inserts a card or a coin into a paper discharge port bymistake. In this case, there is a problem in that a paper dischargepassage and a discharge port may be obstructed, preventing a receipt,etc., from being issued. Furthermore, it is desirable that the apparatusbe improved so that the taking of a receipt, etc., will be forgotten asrarely as possible.

Therefore, the present invention was made in view of the above-describedcircumstances, and it is an object thereof to provide a paper dischargeapparatus which can securely prevent paper jams and paper retention fromoccurring so that paper issuing and collecting operations can bereliably performed, and moreover, which can prevent some problems fromoccurring even if a user performs various operations incorrectly.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

In a first aspect of the present invention, a paper discharge apparatuscomprises: a paper printing device for printing on a paper; a paperconveyor device for conveying the paper to the paper printing device; apaper cutting device disposed downstream of the paper printing devicefor cutting the paper when a printing operation is completed; a pair ofdischarge rollers disposed downstream of the paper cutting device forconveying the paper toward a paper discharge port, the pair of dischargerollers clamping a leading end of the paper until the printing operationis completed so as to bend the paper downward to form a loop between thepaper cutting device and the pair of discharge rollers, conveying thepaper downstream until a trailing end of the paper leaves off the papercutting device, and conveying the paper upstream to collect the paperwhich is discharged at the paper discharge port and not removed; and apaper sensing device provided near the paper discharge port.Furthermore, the present invention is characterized by comprising apaper guide device is provided along both surfaces of the paper betweenthe paper cutting device and the pair of discharge rollers, having amovable guide member which is adapted to open the bottom of a paperconveyor passage extending from the paper cutting device to the pair ofdischarge rollers at least when the paper is bent downward to form aloop.

According to the paper discharge apparatus as constructed above, themovable guide member opens the bottom of the paper conveyor passage,whereby the paper can be bent downward by clamping a leading end of thepaper between the pair of discharge rollers until the printing andcutting operations are completed. Therefore, an inadvertent action of acustomer can be prevented, and moreover, a collected slip of paper canbe dropped at a given place. In particular, according to the presentinvention, since the bottom of the paper conveyor passage which extendsfrom the cut device to the pair of discharge rollers can be closed whenthe paper is conveyed to the pair of discharge rollers, the paper can besecurely clamped between the pair of discharge rollers by guiding thepaper using a guide device even if the paper curls strongly, wrinkles,or weakens.

Here, the movable guide member is inclinably supported at an upstreamend thereof so as to move between a first position in which the guidemember extends along the paper and a second position in which the guidemember inclines downward, and a downstream free end of the guide devicecan be inclined so as to release the paper to be collected. Thecollected paper thereby does not obstruct the paper collecting passagedue to static electrical charge or curling, so that the paper collectingoperation can be securely performed.

As another device for smoothly collecting the paper, a paper receivingmember extending downward from the upstream end thereof when the movableguide member is located at the first position, which bends by contactinga trailing end of the paper to be collected, and which thrusts downwardthe trailing end of the paper, can be provided. According to such aconstruction, when the trailing end of the paper bent upward at thecenter thereof in the cross direction contacts the paper receivingmember, the paper receiving member bends backward to escape, whereby thetrailing end of the paper is turned downward and becomes softer.Consequently, an excessive load given to the pair of discharge rollerscan be effectively prevented from occurring. It is preferable that thepaper receiving members be provided at two points on both surfaces ofthe paper in the cross direction. In such a construction, the end of thepaper is firstly bent at a corner which is easily bent.

Furthermore, it is preferable that a paper thrusting member be providedat a downstream free end of the movable guide member, in which the paperthrusting member protrudes upward from the free end to the downstream ofthe movable guide member, reaches a side surface of an upper dischargeroller of the pair of discharge rollers when the movable guide member islocated at the first position, and the paper is passed so that it bendsdownward when the paper is discharged. In this construction, since thepaper thrusting member is located at a side surface of the dischargeroller, it does not interfered with the discharge roller. Therefore, thepaper thrusting member does not prevent the discharge roller fromrotating when the paper is collected, and moreover, the paper thrustingmember extends in the vicinity of a clamping portion of the pair ofdischarge rollers, whereby the paper is restrained until the pair ofdischarge rollers clamps it; the paper can then be securely clampedbetween the pair of discharge rollers even if a leading end of the papercurls to a great extent. In addition, according to this construction,there is also an advantage in that the collected paper is not insertedinto a paper conveyor passage above the movable guide member even if atrailing end (upstream end) of the collected paper curls stronglyupward.

A shutter is provided on the movable guide member by way of a connectingdevice, and is constructed for opening and closing the discharge port inassociation with the inclination of the movable guide member, whereby aforeign material such as a card, a coin, etc., can be effectivelyprevented from being inserted into the discharge port.

In a second aspect of the present invention, a paper guide device isprovided downstream of the pair of discharge rollers along both surfacesof the paper, instead of the above paper guide device, and the paperguide device is constructed so that a paper feeding angle at a conveyingportion of the pair of discharge rollers is different from that at adischarging portion facing the discharge port. Such a construction canbe also provided in the above-described first aspect of the presentinvention.

According to such a paper discharge apparatus, since paper feedingangles in the paper guide device are different, even if a foreignmaterial such as a card, etc., is inserted into the discharge port, itis blocked by the paper guide device and is thereby not inserted furthertherein. Therefore, the recipient can see that an operation is incorrectand pull out the card, etc., thereby performing the operation correctly.

In a third aspect of the present invention, a pair of second dischargerollers facing the discharge port is provided downstream of a pair offirst discharge rollers, instead of the guide device of the second paperdischarge device. This pair of second discharge rollers clamps atrailing end of the paper until the paper discharged from the dischargeport is removed and conveyed the paper upstream toward the pair of firstdischarge rollers when the paper remains for a given period, therebycollecting the paper. Such a construction can be also provided in theabove-described first or second aspect of the present invention.

According to such a paper discharge apparatus, most of the paper can beexposed even if the length of the paper is short, whereby attention ofthe user can be drawn to the paper and the paper P can prevented frombeing forgotten. In this case, the pair of second discharge rollers isrotated so as to convey the paper upstream to a position at which thepaper sensing device can detect the paper when a given period elapsesafter the paper is discharged at the discharge port. The paper canthereby be collected when the paper sensing device detects the paper.

Furthermore, the pair of second discharge rollers is rotated to conveythe paper upstream to a position at which the paper sensing device candetect the paper after the paper is discharged at the discharge port.The paper can thereby be also collected when the paper is continuouslydetected for a given period by the paper sensing device. In this case,since it can be always determined by the paper sensing device whether ornot the paper is present, the next operation can be started withoutwaiting for a given period after receiving the paper.

In a fourth aspect of the present invention, common tangents of the pairof first discharge rollers and the pair of second discharge rollers inthe above-described third aspect are inclined with respect to eachother. According to such a construction, even if a foreign material suchas a card, etc., is inserted into the discharge port, it is blocked bythe pair of first discharge rollers or other members so that it is notinserted further therein, and so that the user can see that theoperation is incorrect.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional side view of a printer employed a paper dischargeapparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional side view of a printer showing a paper bendingstate in a paper discharge apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a sectional side view of a printer showing a state where apaper is released in a paper discharge apparatus while the paper iscollected;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing from a paper printing operation to apaper cutting operation;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a paper discharging operation after acutting operation;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a paper collecting operation;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing an operation where a paper is released ina paper discharge apparatus while collecting the paper;

FIG. 8 is a sectional side view of a printer provided with a shutter,etc., according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a sectional side view of a printer according to a thirdembodiment of the present invention, in which a second paper conveyorpassage R2 is linearly provided;

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a paper collecting operation accordingto a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a sectional side view of a printer employing a paperdischarge apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12 is a plane view showing a cross-section taken along line XII—XIIof a movable guide plate and a thrusting plate in FIG. 11; and

FIG. 13 is a partial side view of the paper discharging apparatusaccording to the fifth embodiment; and

FIG. 14 is a front view showing a state where the center of a paper slipis bending.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A paper discharge apparatus according to the present invention will nowbe described with reference to the figures, illustrating embodimentsemployed in a printer.

1. First Embodiment

A. Construction of Printer

FIG. 1 is a sectional side view showing the overall construction of aprinter according to a first embodiment of the invention. Since thisprinter conveys a paper P from the left to the right in the figure, inthe following explanation, the left in the figure refers to the upstream(trailing end) and the right refers to the downstream (leading end).Reference numeral 1 in the figures refers to a roll of paper woundaround a winding shaft 1 a. The winding shaft 1 a is rotatably supportedin a printer. An idle roller 2 is rotatably supported downstream of theroll of paper 1. A printing mechanism (printing device) 5 is mountedfurther downstream and is provided with a platen roller 3 which can berotated by a motor 3 a and a thermal printing head 4 disposed opposingabove this platen roller 3. The thermal printing head 4 prints line byline on a paper P unwound from the roll paper 1 while moving in adirection crossing at a right angle to the paper surface in the figures.The thermal printing head 4 is thrust on the platen roller 3, wherebythe paper P can be conveyed by frictional force generated between thepaper P and the platen roller 3.

A cutter (cutting device) 10 is mounted downstream of the printingmechanism 5. Reference numeral 11 refers to a housing of the cutter 10,and a cutter blade 12 is provided in the housing 11 so that it can bemoved in the vertical direction by a motor 12 a. Slits 13 and 14 forpassing the paper P are formed on the housing 11, and guides 15 and 16for guiding the paper P are attached to each slit 13 and 14. A paperconveyor portion 20 for discharging and collecting the paper P ismounted downstream of the cutter 10.

A frame 21 is provided on both sides of the paper conveyor portion 20(both sides in a direction crossing at a right angle to the papersurface in the figures). A first fixed guide plate (guide device) 22 isattached to the frame 21 so as to extend almost horizontally over theentire length of the frame 21. A first inclined plate portion 22 a isprovided on a trailing end of the first fixed guide plate 22 so as toincline with a rising gradient toward the upstream, whereby a leadingend of the paper P is inserted below the first fixed guide plate 22 evenif the end is curled upward. A first horizontal plate portion 22 b isprovided downstream of the first inclined plate portion 22 a so as toextend almost horizontally. A second inclined plate portion 22 c isprovided downstream of the first horizontal plate portion 22 b so as toincline with a rising gradient toward the downstream, and a secondhorizontal plate portion 22 d is provided downstream of the secondinclined plate portion 22 c so as to extend almost horizontally. Amovable guide plate (movable guide member) 23 is attached below thefirst horizontal plate portion 22 b.

A trailing end of the movable guide plate 23 is rotatably secured to ashaft 23 a supported on the frame 21. A rotating shaft of a motor 25 isconnected to the shaft 23 a by way of a torque limiter 24, whereby themovable guide plate 23 can incline in the direction denoted by an arrowaround the shaft 23 a in the figures. A first conveyor passage R1 forguiding and passing the paper P is formed by the guide 16, the movableguide plate 23, the first inclined plate portion 22 a and the firsthorizontal plate portion 22 b of the first fixed guide plate 22.Reference numerals 26 and 27 in the figures refer to switches which areturned on when the movable guide plate 23 comes to a risen end positionor a fallen end position, respectively.

A second fixed guide plate 30 is attached below the second inclinedplate portion 22 c and the second horizontal plate portion 22 d of thefirst fixed guide plate 22. A leading end of the second fixed guideplate 30 is bent downward, whereby a discharge port Ex is formed betweenthe end and a leading end of the second horizontal plate portion 22 d. Atrailing end of the second fixed guide plate 30 is turned about 120degrees downward. A second conveyor passage R2 for guiding and passingthe paper P is formed by a bend portion 30 a, a horizontal plate portion30 b which extends toward the downstream, the second inclined plateportion 22 c, and the second horizontal plate portion 22 d of the firstfixed guide plate 22. A trailing end portion of the second conveyorpassage R2 inclines with a rising gradient and a leading end portionthereof extends almost horizontally, whereby feeding angles of the paperP in the portions are different from each other.

A driven roller 40 a and a driving roller 40 b, which constitute a pairof first discharge rollers 40, protrude from the bend portion 30 a ofthe second fixed guide plate 30 and the second inclined plate portion 22c of the first fixed guide plate 22, respectively. The driven roller 40a is rotatably supported on the frame 21. The driving roller 40 b isthrust on the driven roller 40 a by a suitable force, and the shaft ofthe roller 40 b is connected to a rotating shaft of a motor 42 by way ofa torque limiter 41. The pair of first discharge rollers 40 can berotated for discharging the paper P and can be rotated in reverse forcollecting the paper. A common tangent of the pair of first dischargerollers 40 inclines with a rising gradient toward the downstream.

A driven roller 50 a and a driving roller 50 b, which constitute a pairof second discharge rollers 50, protrude from the horizontal plateportion 30 b of the second fixed guide plate 30 and the secondhorizontal plate portion 22 d of the first fixed guide plate 22,respectively. The driven roller 50 a is rotatably supported on the frame21. The driving roller 50 b is thrust on the driven roller 50 a bysuitable force, and the shaft of the roller 50 b is connected to arotating shaft of the motor 42 by way of a torque limiter 41, in thesame way as the pair of first discharge rollers 40. The pair of seconddischarge rollers 50 can be rotated in the same direction as the pair offirst discharge rollers 40. A common tangent of the pair of seconddischarge rollers 50 extends generally horizontally.

Reference numeral 60 in the figures refers to a sensor for detecting thepaper, and reference numeral 61 refers to a collection tray.

B. Construction of Control Apparatus

The construction of the control apparatus for controlling an operationof a printer will now be described. The control apparatus comprises, forexample, a microcomputer which includes a memory such as EPROM, RAM,etc.; a CPU; and an I/O unit and is provided with the printer controlunit 100 for controlling operations from printing to cutting and thepaper discharge control unit 200 for controlling discharging andcollecting operations of a cut paper. A paper conveyor control unit 101is provided in the printer control unit 100, in which the paper conveyorcontrol unit 101 controls conveying the paper P. Reference numeral 102refers to a printing control unit for controlling an operation in whichthe thermal printing head 4 prints on the paper P. Print data are inputfrom an external host computer, etc., to the printing control unit 102,by way of a CPU. Reference numeral 103 refers to a cutter control unitfor controlling the rotation of the motor 12 a so as to move the cutterblade 12 in the vertical direction. The paper discharge control unit 200controls the rotation of the motor 25 so as to incline the movable guideplate 23 at a given timing and controls the motor 42 for rotating thepairs of first and second discharge rollers 40 and 50.

C. Printer Operations

Paper Discharge

The operations from printing on the paper P to cutting are executedaccording to algorithm shown in FIG. 4. The apparatus is initialized byturning on a power switch, thereby being set in a state shown in FIG. 1.Print data and a print starting signal are input to a CPU by pushing aprint button, etc., provided on a front panel, etc., of a printer, andthe printing control unit 102 prints on the paper P by one lineaccording to an instruction of the CPU (step S1). A program goes to stepS2 where the paper P is conveyed by one line. The paper conveyor controlunit 101 controls the motor 3 a, thereby rotating the platen roller 3,so that the paper conveyor operation is performed. The program goes tostep S3 where the rotation (normal rotation) of the pairs of first andsecond discharge rollers 40 and 50 are started by rotating the motor 42.The program goes to step S4 where it is determined whether or not asensor 60 detects the paper P. If the sensor 60 does not detect thepaper P, the determination in step S4 is “No”, whereby the program goesto step S5 where it is determined whether or not the printing bypredetermined lines (n lines) is completed. A counter of the CPUadditionally counts the number of printed lines in step S1 or step S6 atevery completion of one line and this number is subtracted from values(n) which is written into a register of the CPU, when the result iszero, it is determined that the predetermined lines are completed. Ifthe printing by the n lines is not completed, the determination in stepS5 is “No”, whereby the program goes to step S6 where the paper P isprinted by one line and then the program goes to step S7 where the paperP is conveyed by one line. Unless the printing by the n lines iscompleted, the procedures in steps S4 through S7 are repeated.

When the printing of some lines is performed, the paper P is conveyedtoward the downstream so as to guide along the first conveyor passageR1, and the leading end thereof reaches the pair of discharge rollers 40and is clamped therebetween. In the case in which the platen roller 3 isrotated and conveys the paper P, the paper P is conveyed toward thedownstream by the pair of first discharge rollers 40. However, in thecase in which the platen roller 3 is stopped and the next printingoperation starts, the paper P is kept between the platen roller 3 andthe thermal print head 4, whereby the torque limiter 41 is activated andthe rotation of the pair of first discharge rollers 40 is stopped. Whenthe printing operation is completed, the paper P is conveyed furthertoward the downstream by rotating of the platen roller 3 and the pair offirst discharge rollers 40. If the leading end of the paper P isdetected by the sensor 60, the determination in step S4 is “Yes”, andthe program goes to step S8 where the rotation of the motor 42 isstopped.

The program goes to step S9 where the motor 25 is rotated (normalrotation), whereby the movable guide plate 23 is inclined downward. Theprogram goes to step S10 where it is determined whether or not theswitch 27 is turned on by the movable guide plate 23. If thedetermination in step S10 is “No”, the procedure in step S10 isrepeated. If the switch 27 is turned on, the determination in step S10is “Yes”, whereby the program goes to step S11 where the rotation of themotor 25 is stopped.

When the printing by the n lines is completed, the determination in stepS5 is “Yes”, whereby the program goes to step S12 where the platenroller 3 is rotated and the paper P is conveyed by the m lines. Then,the program goes to step S12 a where the cutter blade 12 is raised andfalls, whereby the paper P is cut off. FIG. 2 shows this state. As shownin FIG. 2, a bottom of the first conveyor passage R1 is opened, and thepaper P bends downward and forms a loop at this portion.

The discharge of the paper P is performed according to an algorithmshown continuously in FIGS. 4 through 5. The pairs of first and seconddischarge rollers 40 and 50 are rotated by the motor 42, whereby thepaper P is conveyed downstream (step S13), so that it is determinedwhether or not the sensor 60 detects the paper P (step S14). Theprocedure in step S14 is repeated while the sensor 60 detects the paperP. If the sensor 60 does not detect the paper P, the program goes tostep S15 where the rotation of the motor 42 is stopped. This state issuch that the paper P passes the sensor 60 and the trailing end thereofis clamped by the pair of second discharge rollers 50 whereby most ofthe paper P is exposed from the discharge port Ex.

Thereafter, the program goes to step S16 where the motor 25 is rotatedin reverse, whereby the movable guide plate 23 is inclined upward. Theprogram goes to step S17 where it is determined whether or not theswitch 26 is turned on by the movable guide plate 23. If it is turnedoff, the procedure in step S17 is repeated. If the switch 26 is turnedon, the determination in step S17 is “Yes”, whereby the program goes tostep S18 where the rotation of the motor 25 is stopped. Consequently,the discharging operation of the paper P is completed.

When the paper P is discharged from the discharge port Ex, there is arisk that a recipient will prevent the paper from being discharged bypicking it up. In this case, if the rotation of the pairs of first andsecond discharge rollers 40 and 50 is continued, the paper forms a wavyloop inside the printer, whereby a normal discharging operation cannotbe performed, so that a paper jam is caused. In this embodiment, if thepaper P is prevented from being discharged, the motor 42 is run in idleby activating the torque limiter 41, whereby paper feed is stopped. Whenexternal force on the paper P is eliminated, the torque limiter 41 isdeactivated, whereby the pairs of first and second conveyor rollers 40and 50 are rotated and discharge of the paper P is resumed.

When the torque limiter 41 is activated so that the recipient pulls thepaper P out from the discharge port Ex, the pair of first and seconddischarge rollers 40 and 50 can be easily rotated. Therefore, therecipient can easily pull out the paper P. Since the pair of seconddischarge rollers 50 which is closed to the discharge port Ex clamps thetrailing end of the paper P, most of the paper P is exposed from thedischarge port Ex. The attention of the recipient is thereby directed tothe paper P, and the paper P is prevented from being forgotten. Sincethe movable guide plate 23 is raised and closes downward when the paperP passes through the first conveyor passage R1, the paper P can beinserted almost straight between the pair of first conveyor rollers 40even if the paper P wrinkles, curls strongly, or weakens, therebypreventing a jam of the paper P from occurring.

Thereafter, the operation for collecting the paper P is described withreference to FIGS. 6 and 7. As shown in FIG. 6, when a given periodelapses after the motor 42 is stopped, the program goes from step S20 tostep S21 where the motor 42 is rotated in reverse. The program goes tostep S22 where it is determined whether or not the sensor 60 detects thepaper P. If the paper P is not detected, the program goes to step S23where it is determined whether or not a given period elapses after thereverse rotation of the motor 42 is started. If the sensor 60 does notdetect the paper P and the given period does not further elapse, theprogram repeats the procedures in steps S21 through S23. If the givenperiod elapses in step S23, the program goes to step S24 where the motor42 is stopped. Consequently, the operation in the case in which thepaper P was normally received is completed.

When the sensor 60 detects the paper P, the determination in step S22 is“Yes”, whereby the program goes to step S25 where it is determined againwhether or not the sensor 60 detects the paper P. If the paper P isdetected, the motor 42 is rotated in reverse and the procedure in stepS25 is repeated until the sensor 60 does not detect it. If thedetermination in step S25 is “No”, the program goes to step S27 wherethe motor 42 is rotated in reverse further for a given period after thepaper P is not detected in step S25 and the procedure in step S27 isrepeated until the given period elapses. When the reverse rotation ofthe motor 42 is continued for a given period after the paper P is notdetected, the determination in step S27 is “Yes”, whereby the programgoes to step S29 where the reverse rotation of the motor 42 is stopped.

When the above-described operation is completed, the end of the paper Pleaves the pair of first discharge rollers 40 and the paper P falls andis stored in the collection tray 61. However, the paper P may adhere tothe pair of first discharge rollers 40 or another portion due to staticelectrical charge, or the paper P may curl strongly upward whereby ablockage may be caused in the paper collecting passage. Therefore, inthis embodiment, the operation for releasing the paper P is performedaccording to the algorithm shown continuously in FIGS. 6 through 7.

The movable guide plate 23 is inclined downward by rotating the motor 25(step S30). As shown in FIG. 3, the paper P is thereby released by themovable guide plate 23. The motor 25 is rotated until the switch 27 isturned on by the movable guide plate 23 (step S31). When the switch 27is turned on, the motor 25 is stopped (step S32). Thereafter, the motor25 is rotated in reverse (step S33), and the motor 25 is stopped (stepsS34 and S35) when the switch 26 is turned on.

According to the above paper discharge apparatus, in addition to theabove-described effects, an effect is obtained which prevents foreignmaterials from being inserted into the discharge port Ex. That is, as isapparent in FIG. 1, if a card, etc., is inserted into the discharge portEx, it is blocked by the second inclined plate portion 22 c of the firstfixed guide plate 22 and is thereby not inserted further therein.Therefore, when the recipient notices the incorrect operation, the card,etc., can be pulled out and correct operation can be performed. Sincecommon tangents of the pairs of first and second discharge rollers 40and 50 incline with respect to each other, the insertion of the card,etc., is also blocked by the pair of first discharge rollers.

2. Second Embodiment

The second embodiment according to the present invention will now bedescribed with reference to FIG. 8. A shutter 70 is provided in anembodiment shown in FIG. 8 so as to open and shut the discharge port Ex.A pair of arms (connecting members) 71 is secured to both edges of abase portion of the movable guide plate 23, an end of the arm isprotruded from a front panel of the printer, and the shutter 70 issecured thereto. In this case, when the sensor 60 detects the paper P,the motor 25 can be controlled so as to incline the movable guide plate23 downward. Such a construction may effectively prevent foreignmaterials from being inserted into the discharge port Ex.

As shown in FIG. 8, a sensor 75 for detecting the paper P may be furthera provided downstream of the pair of second discharge rollers 50. It canbe immediately determined whether or not the paper P is received byproviding this sensor 75, eliminating the need for the operation inwhich the pair of second discharge rollers 50 is reversely rotated untilthe sensor 60 detects the paper P (steps S20 through S24 in FIG. 6),whereby consumption of electricity, rollers, etc., can be decreased.

As shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, a sensor 80 for detectingpeople may be provided, for example, at a suitable portion on a frontpanel. As the sensor 80, for example, an infrared sensor can beemployed. Even if a recipient is at a loss how to operate the printerand does not receive the paper P for a while, the paper P is notcollected since the sensor 80 detects the recipient.

3. Third Embodiment

The embodiment shown in FIG. 9 according to the present invention is onein which the pair of second discharge rollers is omitted from componentsof the above embodiments, and in which a second conveyor passage R2 isprovided so as to extend almost linearly along a common tangent of thepair of first discharge rollers 40. The movable guide plate 23 isprovided in this embodiment, thereby reliably performing discharging andcollecting operations even if a paper wrinkles, curls strongly, orweakens.

4. Fourth Embodiment

The fourth embodiment shown in FIG. 10 is one in which the papercollecting control in FIG. 6 is altered, and in which the sensor 60always detects the paper P which is discharged to the discharge port Exand is returned by only a short length thereof, thereby alwaysdetermining whether or not the paper P is present. The paper collectingcontrol of this embodiment will be now described from a state in whichthe operation for discharging the paper P is completed in step S18 inFIG. 5. When the operation for discharging is completed, the reverserotation of the motor 42 is started in step S120 in FIG. 10. Thereafter,the program goes to step S121 where it is determined whether or not thesensor 60 detects the paper P. If the paper P is not detected, theprogram goes to step S122 where it is determined whether or not a givenperiod has elapsed after starting the reverse rotation of the motor 42.If the sensor 60 does not detect the paper P and the given period doesnot further elapse, the procedures in steps S121 and S122 are repeated.If the given period elapses in step S122, the program goes to step S123where the motor 42 is stopped. Consequently, the operation in the casein which the paper P was normally received is completed.

When the sensor 60 detects the paper P, the determination in step S121is “Yes”, the program goes to step S124 where the motor 42 is stopped,thereafter the program goes to step S125 where it is determined whetheror not the sensor 60 detects the paper P. If the sensor 60 does notdetect the paper P, the procedure of the paper collecting control iscompleted. That is, the operation in the case in which the paper P wasreceived is completed. When the sensor 60 detects the paper P, theprogram goes to step S126 where it is determined whether or not acollecting command is inputted from an external host computer. The hostcomputer outputs the collecting command according to detecting signalsinputted from, for example, an infrared sensor for detecting a user asdescribed above.

When the collecting command is inputted from the host computer in stepS126, the program jumps to step S128 where the below-describedcollecting operation of the paper P is started. When the collectingcommand is not inputted, the program goes to step S127 where it isdetermined whether or not a given period has elapsed after stopping themotor 42 in step S124. If the given period does not elapse, theprocedures in steps S125 through S127 are repeated.

When the given period elapses in step S127, the program goes to stepS128 where the reverse rotation of the motor 42 is started, andthereafter the collecting operation after step S129 is performed. Sincethe control after step S129 is the same as steps S25 through S29 in FIG.6, an explanation thereof is omitted.

According to the above embodiment, it can always be determined whetheror not the paper P is presented at the discharge port Ex, whereby thenext operation can be started without waiting for a given period afterreceiving the paper P, and the collection of the paper P can be alsocontrolled by a command from a host computer. In the case in which theinfrared sensor continuously detects users lined up in front of theapparatus, in which the infrared sensor has a problem, or the like, thepaper P is collected after a given period elapses even if the collectingcommand is not inputted from a host computer.

5. Fifth Embodiment

The fifth embodiment according to the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 11 through 13. Since the fifthembodiment differs from the above embodiments in that a thrusting plate(paper thrusting member) 95 is provided on a movable guide plate(movable guide member) 90 and operation for releasing a paper is notperformed, it is mainly explained with regard to these differences. FIG.12 is a plan view of a movable guide plate 90 and a thrusting plate 95,and FIG. 13 is a twice-enlarged view showing a cross-section taken alongline XIII—XIII in FIG. 12. An upstream end of the movable guide plate 90is supported by the shaft 23 a and is inclined by the rotation of theshaft 23 a. A rectangular recessed portion 91 is formed on an uppersurface of the movable guide plate 90 and the thrusting plate 95 isfixed into this recessed portion 91 to locate it. Reference numeral 92in the figures refers to a through hole which penetrates in the verticaldirection, and the through hole 92 penetrates a below-describedreceiving plate (paper receiving member) 96 of the thrusting plate 95.Reference numeral 99 in FIG. 11 refers to a sensor for detecting thepaper.

The thrusting plate 95 consists of a flexible synthetic resin plate. Adownstream end of the thrusting plate 95 protrudes from the movableguide plate 90 toward the downstream, and two thrusting pieces 97 areformed at these two portions so as to protrude upward at an inclinationof 45 degrees. The thrusting pieces 97 are disposed near the outsidesurface of an upper first discharge roller 40 b. Two receiving plates(paper receiving member) 96 are formed on the thrusting plate 95 so asto penetrate the through hole 92 of the movable guide plate 90 andextend downward. The receiving plates 96 are disposed at both sides ofthe paper in the cross direction.

Thereafter, operation of the fifth embodiment will now be described withreference to FIG. 11, etc.

A. Paper Discharge

Since operations of printing through discharging the paper P are thesame as in the above first embodiment, only operations and effects inthe case in which the paper P is clamped into the pair of firstdischarge rollers 40 will now described. When a leading end of the paperP reaches the thrusting pieces 97 of the thrusting plate 95 in a stateshown in FIG. 11, a free end of the thrusting plate 95 is flexibilitybent downward by conveying force of the paper P, whereby the paper P isthrust on the upper first discharge roller 40 b by elastic force of thethrusting plate 95. In the state in which the thrusting plate 95 bendsdownward, the thrusting pieces 97 turn to a clamping portion of the pairof first discharge rollers 40 so as to be located in the immediatevicinity of the clamping portion, whereby the leading end of the paper Pdischarged from the thrusting pieces 97 is directly inserted into theclamping portion and is clamped therebetween. Therefore, the paper canbe securely clamped between the pair of first discharge rollers 40 evenif the leading end of the paper P curls strongly downward.

B. Paper Collecting

Paper collection in the fifth embodiment is performed in the same way asin the above first embodiment; however, it is different in that thepaper is not released by being pushed off. That is, the pair of firstdischarge rollers 40 and the pair of second discharge rollers 50 arerotated in reverse, whereby the paper P is backed through under themovable guide plate 90. In that case, even if a trailing end of thepaper P curls strongly upward, the paper P cannot be inserted into thepaper conveyor passage by the blocking of the thrusting pieces 97 of thethrusting plate 95. In the case in which the center of the paper P inthe cross direction bends upward, the paper P has rigidity and linearlyextends along the common tangent of the pair of first discharge rollers40. When the trailing end of the paper P reaches the receiving plate 96,as shown in FIG. 13, the receiving plate 96 bends backward by paperconveying force. Bending force F guiding the paper downward is producedat the trailing end of the paper P. Consequently, bending of the paper Pis eliminated, whereby the paper P can be collected without exerting anexcessive load on the pair of first discharge rollers 40.

6. Modifications

The present invention can be modified as follows.

{circle around (1)} A sensor for detecting a paper may be providedupstream of the pair of first discharge rollers 40, whereby rotation ofthe motor 42 can be started after the sensor detects the paper.

{circle around (2)} Rotation of the motor 42 may be started after agiven period elapses after printing on the first line starts.

{circle around (3)} The movable guide plate 23 may be inclined a pluralnumber of times during paper collecting operation.

{circle around (4)} In the above embodiments, since an end of themovable guide plate 23 does not reach the driven roller 40 a of the pairof first discharge rollers 40, a paper collecting passage for the paperP is always open. However, it may be constructed so that the movableguide plate 23 extends in the vicinity of the driven roller 40 a so asto incline downward before the paper P collecting operation, whereby thepaper collecting passage is temporarily opened.

{circle around (5)} The movable guide plate 23 is inclinably supportedat a trailing end portion thereof; however, it may be inclinablysupported at the side potion thereof, and other suitable constructionsmay be employed.

{circle around (6)} Only one receiving plate may be provided at thecenter of a paper in the cross direction. In this case, the plate havinga greater width than that of the paper may be employed.

{circle around (7)} A ground wire is connected to the frame 21 and anelectrical discharging brush is provided on an end of a receiving plate,and these may be set so that the electrical discharging brush comes incontact with a frame when a bending force is exerted on the receivingplate by conveying the force of the paper during paper collection. Thepaper can thereby be prevented from adhering to the receiving plate, theframe, or the like due to static electrical charge during the papercollection, so that the paper collection can be more smoothly performed.

As explained above, according to the present invention, paper jams andpaper retention can be certainly prevented from occurring even if apaper wrinkles, curls strongly, or weakens, so that an issuance andcollection of the paper can be reliably performed. Furthermore, it canyield effects so that problems can be prevented from occurring even ifusers perform various incorrect operations, or the like.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

A paper discharge apparatus according to the present invention can beapplied to an issuing apparatus for issuing a slip or a ticket from adispenser, an ATM, etc. Since issuance and collection of the paper canbe reliably performed even if a paper weakens, wrinkles, or curlsstrongly by absorbing moisture, in particular, it is suitable for anissuing apparatus in a device installed in an unmanned shop.

What is claimed is:
 1. A paper discharge apparatus comprising: a paperprinting device for printing on a paper; a paper conveyor device forconveying the paper to the paper printing device; a paper cutting devicedisposed downstream of the paper printing device for cutting the paperwhen a printing operation is completed; a pair of discharge rollersdisposed downstream of the paper cutting device for conveying the papertoward a paper discharge port, the pair of discharge rollers clamping aleading end of the paper until the printing operation is completed so asto bend the paper downward to form a loop between the paper cuttingdevice and the pair of discharge rollers, conveying the paper downstreamuntil a trailing end of the paper leaves off the paper cutting device,and conveying the paper upstream to collect the paper which isdischarged at the paper discharge port and not removed; and a papersensing device provided near the paper discharge port; wherein a paperguide device is provided along both surfaces of the paper between thepaper cutting device and the pair of discharge rollers, having a movableguide member which is adapted to open the bottom of a paper conveyorpassage extending from the paper cutting device to the pair of dischargerollers at least when the paper is bent downward to form a loop.
 2. Apaper discharge apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the movableguide member is inclinably supported at an upstream end thereof so as tomove between a first position in which the guide member extends alongthe paper and a second position in which the guide member inclinesdownward, and a downstream free end of the guide member is inclined soas to release the paper to be collected.
 3. A paper discharge apparatusas recited in claim 1, wherein the movable guide member is inclinablysupported at an upstream end thereof so as to move between a firstposition in which the guide member extends along the paper and a secondposition in which the guide member inclines downward, and a paperthrusting member is protrudingly provided at a downstream free end ofthe movable guide member so as to reach the vicinity of an upper rollerof the pair of discharge rollers when the movable guide member islocated at the first position, and is flexibly bent downward to pass thepaper to be discharged.
 4. A paper discharge apparatus as recited inclaim 3, wherein the movable guide member further comprises a paperreceiving member extending downward from the upstream end thereof whenthe movable guide member is located at the first position, and the paperreceiving member is flexibly bent by contacting the trailing end of thepaper to be collected, thereby pushing the paper downward.
 5. A paperdischarge apparatus as recited in one of claims 2 to 4, wherein themovable guide member further comprises a shutter for opening and closingthe discharge port in association with the inclination of the movableguide member.
 6. A paper discharge apparatus comprising: a paperprinting device for printing on a paper; a paper conveyor device forconveying the paper to the paper printing device; a pair of firstdischarge rollers disposed downstream of the paper printing device forconveying the paper toward a paper discharge port; a paper sensingdevice disposed downstream of the pair of discharge rollers; and a papercutting device for cutting the paper when a printing operation iscompleted; the pair of first discharge rollers clamping a leading end ofthe paper until the printing operation is completed so as to bend thepaper downward to form a loop between the pair of first dischargerollers and the paper cutting device, conveying the paper downstreamuntil a trailing end of the paper leaves off the paper cutting device,and conveying the paper upstream to collect the paper which isdischarged at the paper discharge port and not removed; wherein a paperguide device is disposed downstream of the pair of first dischargerollers for guiding the paper toward the paper discharge port; and apair of second discharge rollers is disposed downstream of the papersensing device and at a position in the vicinity of the paper dischargeport for clamping a trailing end of the paper by only itself until thepaper is removed form the discharge port, and conveying the paperupstream of the pair of first discharge rollers for collection when thepaper remains at the discharge port for a given period.
 7. A paperdischarge apparatus as recited in claim 6, wherein, when a given periodelapses after the paper is discharged at the discharge port, the pair ofsecond discharge rollers is rotated to convey the paper upstream to aposition at which the paper sensing device can detect the paper, and thepaper is collected when it is detected by the paper sensing device.
 8. Apaper discharge apparatus as recited in claim 7 wherein, after the paperis discharged at the discharge port, the pair of second dischargerollers is rotated to convey the paper upstream to a position at whichthe paper sensing device can detect the paper, and the paper iscollected when the paper is continuously detected for a given period bythe paper sensing device.
 9. A paper discharge apparatus comprising: apaper printing device for printing on a paper; a paper conveyor devicefor conveying the paper to the paper printing device; a pair of firstdischarge rollers disposed downstream of the paper printing device forconveying the paper toward a paper discharge port, a paper sensingdevice provided near the paper discharge port; a paper cutting devicedisposed upstream of the pair of first discharge rollers for cutting thepaper when a printing operation is completed; and a loop forming spacedisposed between the paper cutting device and the pair of firstdischarge rollers; the pair of first discharge rollers clamping aleading end of the paper until the printing operation is completed so asto bend the paper downward to form a loop in the loop forming space,conveying the paper downstream until a trailing end of the paper leavesoff the paper cutting device, and conveying the paper upstream tocollect the paper which is discharged at the paper discharge port andnot removed; wherein a pair of second discharge rollers is disposeddownstream of the pair of first discharge rollers and between the loopforming space and the paper discharge port, and a common tangent of thepair of second discharge rollers is inclined to that of the pair offirst discharge rollers.